The Suncor Energy oil refinery in Commerce City has spilled excessive amounts of inorganic nitrogen into Sand Creek three times in the past week.
The total inorganic nitrogen level was 12 milligrams per liter on Friday and 14 milligrams per liter on Monday. The refinery is allowed to discharge up to 10 milligrams per liter daily under its federal water permit, according to a public notification sent by Suncor on Monday night.
On Wednesday night, the refinery sent another notification that inorganic nitrogen levels reached 12 milligrams per liter when tested on Tuesday.
The cause of the spills is under investigation, the alert stated. Testing is ongoing but since the inorganic nitrogen already has been released into the water there is no way to clean it up, said CDPHE spokesman John Michael.
Inorganic nitrogen takes the forms of nitrate, nitrite and ammonia and is the way regulators measure nitrogen in industrial wastewater. Too much nitrogen in water can increase algae growth and can decrease the oxygen that fish and other aquatic life need to survive. Excessive amounts of nitrate in drinking water is dangerous for infants younger than six months, Michael said.
Sand Creek feeds into the Platte River, which is a source of drinking water for people in the northern Front Range and farmers use it to irrigate crops and for livestock. Water treatment plants downstream routinely test for increased nitrate levels, Michael said.
The refinery sent a public alert about the spill on Monday evening. It was the first alert sent under the terms of its latest water permit.
Suncor has issued alerts about excess air pollution for several years, but the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment required the company to start sending similar notifications about water pollution when it approved its latest permit in March.
The public can sign up for notifications in English or Spanish on Suncor’s website: suncor.com/en-ca/what-we-do/refining/commerce-city-refinery/notifications.
This story was updated on Thursday, June 6 after the third spill.
